asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what steps Her Majesty's Government is taking to set up negotiating machinery on pay and conditions for Government servants in Hong Kong.

The Government of Hong Kong are conducting a review of staff relations in the Government service, and ways of improving the machinery for consultation and negotiation with staff associations.

Can the hon. Gentleman be a little more positive by saying that he himself is encouraging the Hong Kong Government in this matter? Does he not agree that the efforts of the Hong Kong Government to get trade unionism on a more regular footing in the Colony as a whole would be more effective if the Government were themselves to put more effort into this with their own employees?

This is probably a matter best left to the Hong Kong Government. I am sure that hon. Members will recognise that Whitleyism, as practised in Britain, may not fit very easily into the different pattern of Hong Kong. There are a number of very real difficulties here.

Is the hon. Gentleman saying that, for instance, representations from married women Government servants in Hong Kong should have to proceed by humble petition? Does not he feel that this is a little archaic?

I think that there is another Question on that matter a little later on the Order Paper.